Haiti has dispatched 150 soldiers to train in Mexico as the Caribbean country is tackling rampaging gang violence.
The military will depart Port-au-Prince on Thursday and spend the next three months on training courses in Mexico.
A total of 700 Haitian soldiers will eventually join the program.
Haiti Prime Minister Alix Didier Philz Aimé said the initiative is part of a broader roadmap focusing on restoring security, revitalizing public institutions and setting up elections.
“It shows the government’s firm determination to restore Republican order, restore national authorities across the country and ensure protection for all citizens,” a statement from the government read.
Mexican security forces have extensive experience in fighting criminal groups, particularly international drug cartels, but these efforts have not been able to significantly reduce violence and murder rates.
CNN has contacted the Mexican government for further details on how to train Haitian military.
In Haiti, gang attacks have killed and injured thousands of people in recent years. It is estimated that more than 80% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, is under gang control, and around 1.3 million people have been displaced internally across the country due to violence, the United Nations said.
Haiti has repeatedly called for international support as it has little effect on restoring security.
Last year, we welcomed hundreds of Kenyan police officers from the US-funded Multinational Security Assistance Mission (MSS). At least two Kenyan officers have been killed and the violence has not been mitigated.
Since the arrival of the MSS, gangs have spread more and more rural areas, grabbing the territory strips of the agriculturally important Artibonite region. Armed attacks in the region last week uprooted another 15,000 people, the United Nations said.
